What Is It With Writers...And Cats?

Thankfully, the cat moved.

Had he not moved, I would be typing with one hand, and it would take forever just to get this far.

What is it with cats...and writers? I had just settled down after a 10-hour work day, dinner, dishes, and playing a little bit with the dog. I fired up the laptop, posted my Pic Of The Day, then tried to decide what to blog about. That's when our miniature lion decided to snuggle up next to me. He positioned himself with his head resting atop my right forearm. 

Pretty much stops any ability to write.

I have a lot of writer friends. And you don't have to be friends with writers to follow them on social media. So many writers have cats. Why is that? I mean, many writers have dogs, too, but dogs are predictable, especially when compared to cats. You play with dogs, eventually you wear them out, they lay down for a nap and you can get back to writing.

Cats...not so much.

Sure, you can play with cats and they get bored, too. But then, they'll pop back up after you think they're taking a nap. Then they'll try and sit on your lap or your laptop or your lap and your laptop. If you try to move them, they may get up and walk away, or they may try and claw your eyes out.

And maybe that's why writers have cats...the unpredictability of it all. You never know what's going to happen.

Yes, I'm lucky the cat moved...

At least, for now.

What Is It With Writers...And Cats?

We have two cats, one that lives mostly indoors and spends a little time outside, and another that does the opposite. The outdoor cat, the one below that we picked up from as a kitten from my cousin's farm in Driggs, Idaho, he leaves me pretty much alone, except waking me up at 6am on non-work mornings.

But the white cat, the one we rescued off the street, she...well, she sometimes won't leave me alone. The picture above shows her actually sitting on my binder that contains my computer.

Since I began seriously writing, I've gotten to know a lot of authors. I've also noticed a lot of them have cats. Like me, they occasionally post picture of their pets (or, are we the cat's pets...?) on social media. 

Buy why writers? Is it because we spend a lot of time in our own brains trying to get the words out of us and cats--for the most part--are content with letting humans do what humans do? Is it because cats are cerebral that fascinate us by the way they act and what they do? I don't know what it is.

There have been times when I've had to kick the cat out of my room and close the door, mostly because she will want to lay atop me. And because writing with a laptop on my lap is my preferred way to write, cat and computer cannot exist in the same space. One must choose--who says art doesn't require sacrifices? The other day while writing, the cat came over and I knew she wanted to climb onboard. I quickly grabbed the computer and opened it up. She decided not to let a computer get in her way at all. What did I do? Snapped a few pictures, of course.

Yes, there seems to be something about the craft of writing and owning a cat. Is the result a net gain, or net loss when it comes to the output? To me, it's a mixed blessing.